Hefty Smurf (Empath stories)
"You've got to smurf yourself as a winner in this world or you're not going to smurf any respect from me." Harold Jordan "Hefty" Smurf is a Smurf character who is part of the EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf story series. History Hefty was the son of Muscles Smurf, born as the twin brother of Handy Smurf. He was named right after he was born for being a big and strong baby, while Handy's name was simply from a careless comment about having a twin child being "handy" that got picked up by Tailor's father who sewed matching name sleepers for the children. (Their official birth names are Harold for Hefty and Henry for Handy.) Like most of his fellow Smurfs his age, he was raised by his parents until an unknown disease had claimed their lives, leaving him and his brothers Handy and Grouchy in the care of Culliford Smurf, who eventually became known as Papa Smurf. The rest of his personal history at least in the present point of the story series is similar to that of his cartoon show counterpart up until around Seasons 5 and 6. About five years after Empath and Smurfette had married, Hefty met his counterpart Artemis from Smurfette Island and married, producing two sons, one of which became the grandfather of Traveler Smurf. Hefty lived for a total of 693 years, as did his brother Handy, after which they were both laid to rest with their fellow Smurfs. Personality While sharing some similarities to his cartoon show universe counterpart, Hefty in these stories tends to be a bit more prideful in his abilities, his being the firstborn Smurf of his generation (born only minutes before his brother Handy), and above all else, being a male Smurf. For one of his birthday parties, Greedy made a cake for him with a chocolate sculpture made by Sculptor of Hefty proudly lifting up a set of barbells. However, at its presentation at Hefty's birthday party, the sun had melted the sculpture so that Hefty's arms were lowered and it appeared that he was losing his strength holding up the barbells. While the other Smurfs found that to be funny, Hefty was not amused and ended up chasing after Sculptor and Greedy. He is rather jealous in the presence of Empath so much that he has become a bitter rival -- acting only civil when a job needs to be done, but always suspicious of Empath and looking for an opportunity to show him up. He is particularly jealous that Smurfette would focus all her affections on Empath instead of him, feeling that he genuinely cares for Smurfette and doesn't want to see her get hurt, and assumes that Smurfette is only interested in "getting under Empath's hat". Hefty's dislike for Empath is made worse by the fact that he and Brainy are both half-brothers, which gives Hefty more of a reason to dislike Brainy. His firstborn pride also extends to a bit of friendly rivalry with his twin brother, Handy, who both live at opposite ends of the Smurf Village, and who both consider themselves to be more important than the other. As a young Smurfling, Hefty acted as a bully toward his younger brother, Grouchy, until Empath stood up against him and eventually forced Hefty to back away from tormenting Grouchy. His position as Papa Smurf's assistant was given over to Brainy and, later on, to Empath. In another instance, Hefty had his hand broken by Empath when he kept poking Empath in the chest during a time when Empath didn't like being physically touched. Though Hefty recovered from the hand injury, he eventually learned it was not wise trying to physically intimidate Empath. Besides his hand, Hefty suffered a broken leg which required him to use a wheelsmurfer in order to get around while it was being healed. Other Smurfs that Hefty seems to have a bit of a rivalry with include Tuffy and Duncan McSmurf, the latter of which he constantly refers to as Gutsy, a name that somehow irritates Duncan. Tuffy and Duncan serve as sort of the id and superego to Hefty's personality, with Tuffy being rather impulsive and Duncan being rather sensible. Kayo Smurf, who constantly challenges Hefty to a boxing match despite the fact that he always loses to Hefty, is usually considered to be a friend of Hefty, as are Willpower and Pushback, the latter being a former target of Hefty's abuse until he learned to stand up for himself with encouragement from both Tapper and Duncan. Although Hefty claims that he truly loves Smurfette, his attitude towards her tends to get rather chauvinistic, as was his attitude toward his sister Sassette before she ran away and was put into a crystal by Avengelica, believing that female Smurfs can never be "true Smurfs". This kind of thinking got him into various sorts of trouble, such as when his sister a few years after she was released from the crystal turned against him, and also when Ghinelle decided to curse Hefty by turning him into a female Smurf for a day. Aside from this, Hefty's pro-masculinity viewpoint also extends to a very militant belief that males and females should be attracted to each other, instead of having a sexual orientation toward the same sex, which he considers very unnatural. Sometime after his return from the Smurfs' time-traveling adventures in The Lost Year, Hefty was disgusted to hear from Empath that his Mirror Universe counterpart actually has a dating relationship with its Handy. Hefty took after his father, Muscles, in the manner of both bodybuilding and wearing tattoos on his arms, although the heart on his right arm is actually a birthmark that got reshaped to match the heart tattoo on his left arm. He isn't very artistic, as his poems and songs that he tries to write for Smurfette in order to attract her to him lack any sense of subtlety, which is why he mostly requires the help of Poet and Singer if he wants to serenade her. Hefty is a bit of a health nut who is very conscious about what he puts into his body, and thus is very careful about what he eats or drinks. He prefers drinking the nonalcoholic version of sarsaparilla ale if it's available. Apart from his first drink at Tapper's Tavern when it was opened, the only other time he ever drank the alcoholic version was the day before Empath's wedding, when he had to face the fact that Smurfette could never marry him no matter what. Surprisingly, it only takes one glass of sarsaparilla ale to make Hefty feel completely inebriated to the point of almost losing consciousness. However, one of Hefty's favorite foods is fruitcake, which he tends to eat plenty of around Christmas. Hefty isn't fond of smoking and is very vocal in his opposition to Smurfs who do smoke, calling it an unhealthy habit, though as a concession he may appear with a lollipop or a candy stick. He rarely if ever uses performance drugs to enhance his own strength, with that one time being the cream he made up with the help of The Great Book Of Answers that boosted his strength for a time but afterward left him weak and requiring crutches to get around. Although he engages in nature and ancestor worship along with his fellow Smurfs, Hefty is at heart an atheist and refuses to get involved in religious discussions with anybody, particularly with Tapper who calls himself a Christian. Strangely, though, he does get swayed into believing in the teachings of Benedictus, a Viperion posing as a traveling missionary. During the time-traveling adventures in The Lost Year, Hefty was the first Smurf among his generation to witness actual evidence of the McSmurf clan legend, "the Loch monster", but unfortunately was made a laughingstock by most of his fellow Smurfs when he tried to prove it to them until several of them were captured by Angus McGarg and were used as bait to try capturing the creature. Relationships * Empath is treated as a rival, though Empath does not reciprocate. In fact, Empath admires Hefty and wishes to be like him. He knows Hefty cares for his fellow Smurfs and won't abandon them. * Papa Smurf is treated as his current father figure after his own has passed away, and seeks to please him in everything he does. * Smurfette is his love interest, though she treats him more as a friend. In an alternate timeline explored by Traveler and Empath in "Hefty, The Luckiest Smurf", Hefty becomes the father of a daughter that he has with Smurfette. * Polaris Psyche is treated with a bit more suspicion from Hefty than with Empath, due to Polaris being a Psyche and a telepath. * Baby Smurf is treated like a little baby brother. Though he doesn't always admit it, Hefty has a soft spot in his heart for the child. His pet names for him are "the little squeezer" and "the little tyke". * Brainy is one of the few Smurfs he can hardly stand, mostly for his behavior. * Handy is his brother and is treated as both a rival and a complementary equal. While they both have the same birthday since they are twins, Greedy bakes separate cakes for both Hefty and Handy. * Grouchy is his brother, whom he originally treated with disdain. * Sassette is his young sister and is currently treated as such. Hefty originally hated her for the fact that she was the only female Smurf born among his generation of Smurfs that also was his own sister and thus he couldn't marry her when he grew up. * Tapper is seen as rather pushy with his religion, but Hefty has no animosity with him. Tapper generally sees Hefty as good-hearted despite his faults. * Duncan McSmurf is treated as a rival, whom he constantly calls Gutsy, which only irritates Duncan. (Narrator believes his reason for doing so is that Hefty in a completely different story was upstaged by Duncan's counterpart.) Nevertheless, Duncan cares for Hefty and treats him as a friend, even if at times he needs to call Hefty out for his mistakes. * Tuffy is seen as someone he has to look out for because of his impulsiveness. * Willpower is his friend that he hopes would turn out to be a better Smurf than he is half the time. * Pushback is treated with great respect since at the end of "The Smurf Who Couldn't Say No" he stood up against Hefty and knocked him out with one punch. * Clumsy surprisingly is treated with great respect by Hefty and is generally regarded as a friend. Anyone who basically treats Clumsy badly will have to answer to Hefty, who doesn't tolerate any abuse towards him. * Vanity is treated with some suspicion of possibly being homosexual by Hefty, and prefers that Baby Smurf and the Smurflings do not emulate his kind of behaviors. * Wild Smurf was at one time treated as a rival, but over time he and Hefty became friends. * Jokey likes to refer to Hefty as "Muscle Brains" and also likes to mess around with Hefty's weights during his exercise routines. One time on one of Hefty's birthdays, Jokey made for him a special birthday cake that he claimed was made entirely of chocolate, which Hefty completely ate, not knowing that the "chocolate" that Jokey used in the cake was actually Smurf poop. * Psycheliana is treated like an adopted daughter, and becomes his student in her early adult years. His only wish for her is to not be like her father. * Artemis is his Smurfette counterpart from Smurfette Island, who like Hefty likes to show how strong and brave she is. He considers her a formidable opponent in any physical game that they engage in together. * Bruno and Buff are his two children through his wife Artemis Smurfette. * Traveler, believe it or not, is Hefty's great-grandson, as he is also that of Empath, Smurfette, and Polaris Psyche. One time when the Smurfs were tending to an injured Traveler, Hefty was astonished to see him bear a heart-shaped birthmark on his upper right arm. Role His current role in the Smurf Village is that of a work-related supervisor, particularly those requiring physical strength and labor. Though Empath is put into a position above his own as the assistant counselor, given authority to lead the village in Papa Smurf's absence, Empath could pass along those duties to Hefty if necessary. When not busy with important village tasks, Hefty is usually seen working out in or operating his gym or playing various types of sports with his fellow Smurfs except for Empath. At Empath and Smurfette's wedding, Hefty, Handy, and Duncan were given the usher positions. At Snappy and Sassette's wedding, he was the escort of the bride. Hefty's role later in his life would be that of a drill instructor, teaching young Smurfs how to protect themselves and their village from possible dangers. Alternate Identities During the events of "Smurfette For A Day", Hefty posed as Smurfette to protect her from the unwanted advances of Picklick the gnome. Alternate Histories There were at least four alternate histories of Hefty that were seen by Traveler. "Papa Smurf & Mama Smurfette" In one history, he sided with Empath Smurf in the rebellion against Papa Smurf when he married Smurfette and produced a daughter through her. "Hefty, The Luckiest Smurf" In another history, when Empath was returned to Psychelia after a year of living with the Smurfs following his 150th birthday, Hefty fell in love with and married Smurfette, having a daughter with her. Before the child was born, the Psyches captured Hefty in order for the Psyche Master to torture him until he died. Smurfette went to Psychelia to confront the Psyche Master, who turned out to be his successor Empath, and plead with him to spare Hefty's life, forcing Empath to remember the life that he had with Smurfette. In the end, Empath released Hefty into Smurfette's care, but said to her that it would be the last time in this lifetime they would ever see each other. "Empath Goes Wild" In a third alternate history, Hefty meets the Smurf who would have been Empath, who is instead called Wild for he had been raised in the forest for about 150 years instead of in Psychelia, since this version of Empath was born without any of his telepathic or telekinetic abilities. During what would otherwise be known as The Lost Year, Hefty and all the other Smurfs were trapped in a never-ending journey through time, in which her fate remains unknown. "The Blue Plague" See the article Hefty Smurf (The Blue Plague, Empath stories). Abilities * Great Physical Strength - he is considered to have five times the strength level of a normal Smurf. In "The Magic Flute" he is able to bend a steel bar with his hands and break a table in two with a single hand chop. In "Smurfily Ever After" he could lift up a cake that is five times his normal size. * Great Agility * Skilled Athlete in various forms of sports and activities requiring physical skill. * Skilled Quarterstaff Fighter * Skilled Hand-To-Hand Combatant * Organization Skills - he is capable of getting his fellow Smurfs to do their assigned tasks, though his methods for doing so changed over the years as Empath, Duncan, and even Papa Smurf had to take Hefty to task over his rather rough and bullish behavior with his fellow Smurfs in his early years. Weaknesses As noted in "A Circus For Baby Smurf", Hefty had a fear of heights. He also has the physical weakness of not being able to fully metabolize fermented drinks, as a single glass of sarsaparilla ale (approximately 3 to 5 milliliters) is capable of rendering him completely drunk. Clothing And Appearance Hefty wore standard white Smurf clothes up until around 15 years after Empath's final return from Psychelia. During his temporary takeover of Papa Smurf's role as the village leader at the end of The Lost Year, Hefty wore a red hat and pants. Since the beginning of his role of a future drill instructor, Hefty wore Smurf clothes with a military camouflage appearance, which was inspired from his time with Wild Smurf. Hefty is identified by the heart marks that he wears on both his upper arms. In his later adult years, Hefty would wear an orange moustache and a face full of stubble. Hefty tends to have a more athletic build than most of his fellow Smurfs around his age, with slightly enhanced arm, leg, and body muscles. Notes * Hefty and Handy's relationship as being twin brothers in the EMPATH story series is supposed to reflect that of the Biblical twins Esau and Jacob, with Hefty representing Esau and Handy representing Jacob. * Hefty's appearance of having two heart tattoos on his upper arms is EMPATH story creator Vic George's method of dealing with the inconsistency of the character's single tattoo mark in mainstream Smurfs media. Interestingly, sometimes in the cartoon show Hefty would have his tattoo mark on both arms. * His character song is "Take The Reins" by Mike And The Mechanics. Trivia * Despite his aversion to being anything feminine, Hefty did disguise himself as Smurfette to protect her from the unwanted affections of Picklick the gnome. * In mainstream media, Hefty did not receive his tattoo marks until around the time of the cartoon show, and was left in that state in the comic books until "The Jewel Smurfer", the first Smurfs comic book that was published after Peyo passed away in 1992. Because of this, Hefty was able to disguise himself as a rebel Smurf in the comic book version of "King Smurf" by removing his royal medal. Unfortunately, he was ambushed by other Smurfs wearing medals who mistook him for a rebel, and nobody believed he was Hefty Smurf until he gave them a good licking. * In the comic books, Hefty wears his heart tattoo on his right arm while in the 2011 Smurfs movie and The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol he wears it on his left arm. In the cartoon show, Hefty's tattoo can be seen on both arms as in the episodes "Gargamel's Second Childhood" and "Swapping Smurfs". In the EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf story series, Hefty received a tattoo mark that matched his birthmark on his right upper arm at around 78 years old. * Hefty is the team leader of the East Smurfs in the first Smurfic Games Tournament. * Hefty's birth name Harold comes from Harold "Hal" Jordan, the Silver Age Green Lantern. Voice Actor(s) Hefty would most likely be voiced by Fred Tatasciore, who was the voice of Kevin Flynn in the TRON: Evolution video game for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and also the Hulk in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Another suitable voice actor would be John C. Reilly, who was the voice of Wreck-It Ralph from Disney's 2012 movie Wreck-It Ralph. Jennifer Hale would most likely do the voice of Hefty as a female Smurf, using the female voice of Commander Shepard from the Mass Effect video game series. A voice similar to that of the late R. Lee Ermey, the drill instructor from Full Metal Jacket, would be suitable for the older version of Hefty. See Also * Reporter's Inside Stories: An Interview With Hefty Category:Empath the Luckiest Smurf characters Category:Smurfs Category:Males Category:Strong Smurfs Category:Fighters Category:Athletes Category:Rough voices Category:Empath's generation Smurfs Category:Characters with markings Category:Smurf Village residents Category:Americus clan Smurfs Category:VicGeorge2K9's articles Category:Heterosexual characters Category:Hefty's family members Category:Handy's family members Category:Grouchy's family members Category:Multiple media universe imports Category:Assistant leaders